They're waiting all the same
by Beanpot
Summary: Based on the prompt: Sam and Teal'c. "Five more planets have fallen to the Ori, including Hebridan and Langara." Concern and/or sorrow for a former team member.


_I own nothing..._

**They're waiting all the same, With their flashlights and their semaphores**

_Her First time_

It was the first mission since Vala had regained her memory and been returned to them. Sam would almost describe their mood as giddy as they teased each other about a whole host of things. One of the security teams had snapped a photo of Cam handcuffed to the bed, and the image had made its way around the SGC. Boxes of snack cakes were deposited in his office, and Sam knew she'd heard Siler whisper "Boh Chicka Boh Boh" when they walked past him in the corridor.

Cam's revenge was teasing Daniel about his date with Vala; wondering if the second one would be a trip to the zoo (Teal'c insisted on chaperoning that one) or rowing a boat across a lake (Vala said she had the perfect hat for that trip).

Sam couldn't remember the last time they all had been smiling, and it warmed her heart. They made their way into a village not yet visited by the Priors. She wasn't sure what they could offer these people, but there was never harm in showing them that there were those willing to fight the Ori.

They turned a corner, and Sam stopped in her tracks. It was the profile, the chin really, that drew her gaze. For a quick second, it was him and then it wasn't as the man turned and she saw the features were sharper, the nose longer, the eyes set further apart.

But for a second, she had been sure it was Jonas, and now she thought that maybe – just maybe - he was out there and not among the fallen.

_His First Time_

It was their second off world mission since Vala Mal Doran had regained her memory. Teal'c let the chatter of his teammates float over him like a soft blanket. He had missed this - the combination of laughter and saving the galaxy. Col. Carter stepped into his peripheral vision, a smile dancing over her lips. On the mission earlier in the week, she had been rather quiet and very determined.

They walked into a local tavern, and he scanned the room for signs of abnormal hostility. There was the normal anti-stranger feeling in the room, but his intuition did not pick up on anything out of the ordinary. He glanced at the rest of the team and saw how they all dropped their shoulders a mere fraction of an inch; they sensed nothing as well.

Col. Mitchell and Daniel Jackson went to talk to the bartender, while Vala Mal Doran and Col. Carter made their way to a group of local women. Teal'c remained by the door. He scanned the room again and there, in the dark corner, someone sat with a hood over their head. By trying to hide in such a conspicuous way, he or she only stood out more. The person reached out to take hold of the mug in front of them and Teal'c was startled by how familiar the hand looked to him. Part of him wanted to leave his spot and pull back the hood to see if the hand belonged to Jonas Quinn, but he would not leave the rest of his team vulnerable.

As if the person had heard Teal'c's silent plea, the hand pushed back the hood to reveal a woman made ageless by hard work and constant toil. She stared at Teal'c and he inclined his head in greeting. She returned the gesture and went back to drinking her ale. Perhaps it wasn't his friend this time, but it did not mean he would not be found.

_Her Fourth Time_

From the back, hair brushed the man's collar. It was almost black, but perhaps he had dyed it while on the run. Sam kept an eye on him as he moved through the market, but he drew a crowd as he knocked over a pile of fruit.

No, not him again. Sam focused back on Vala who was arguing with another barkeep in another bar on another planet with a Prior.

_His Fifth Time_

A ghost of an image flickered past Teal'c right side. He rocked back on his right heel, shifting his body weight, not quite turning so as not to startle whatever…whoever… was there. He had sensed they were being followed since stepping through the gate. From the right, a bush moved and out stepped something resembling a deer.

Teal'c stared at it, a bit angry that it wasn't him again, pleased it wasn't an enemy, and kept moving.

_Their First Time Together_

"Yes, we have refugees from other worlds here. Those who were able to escape before the Ori swept through," said the bartender – a female this time with pale hair and paler eyes.

"Where?" asked Sam. The bartender gave them directions to a tent city on the outside of the wall. The village would help the refugees, but not to the point of hindering themselves. The team headed out to seek information on the movement of the Ori army and if anyone had seen or heard of Daniel. Vala offered water to an elderly woman slumped under a tree, clearly the appointed matriarch of the mishmash of worlds.

No one had seen Daniel, or knew anything they didn't know already. As they were getting ready to leave, Sam turned to the old lady and asked, "Is there anyone here from Langara?"

"I have not heard of that world," the old lady replied.

"Thank you," Sam replied before she saw Teal's staring at her. She shrugged her shoulders, "Just a thought."

"It is one I have as well."

_Another time_

Sam and Teal'c kept their eyes focused on Reynolds and his team as they moved through the crowds at a market place. A rumor had circled that an unknown figure had mentioned knowledge on how to destroy the infamous SG1 - for a price. On their far left, Cam stood behind a tree watching the Gate. They were settled in for a long wait.

Two hours later, Reynolds contacted them over the coms, "I swear if there was inter-planetary People Magazine, you guys would be all over it. Teenage girls would have posters up in their tents and boys would never admit they practiced kissing on Vala."

"So no go?" said Cam.

"Just a guy trying to make a buck. Thought I was Teal'c," Reynolds said, the glee in his voice clear over the static.

Vala's voice chirped over the com, "I knew you'd been working out, big boy. Any word on our lost lamb?"

"Nothing." Reynolds's voice was louder as he moved into their sightline, the rest of SG-3 trailing behind him. They joined the circle, all eyes scanning the woods and fields. Just because the kid was a fake didn't mean they hadn't walked into a trap. "Rumors that there is a benevolent prior out there, but stronger ones that the Ori are laying waste to all dissidents."

Teal'c reached an arm down to steady Sam, a gesture she accepted; the wound from the prior weapon still ached if she sat still for too long. It was Cam who spoke their frustration for them.

"Getting tired of these wild goose chases. Ya know, Jackson could've at least left us bits of clothes for us to follow him for the grand movie rescue." His words were bitter, but were made mild by the exhaustion and desperation they all felt. Cam jammed his cap further down his head and said, "Back home, everyone; nothing to see here. Again."

Back in her office, Sam slumped in her chair, spinning in a slow circle. Teal'c came in, handed her a tea, and perched on her desk. They sat there silently, comforted by the other's presence. "When do you think we will find them?" she asked softly.

"Soon," replied Teal'c.

"I'm pretty sure Daniel is alive, Adria needed him for something, but not sure about Jonas. The Ori destroy everything they touch. We could be clinging to false hope," Sam whispered.

"There is no such thing as false hope; the terms are contradictory. We will bring DanielJackson home and will find JonasQuinn as well. They know we are looking for them," replied Teal'c.

"Daniel does. Does Jonas? It's not like we sent birthday cards and Festivus gifts," her voice was laced with guilt as she reached over to fiddle with the small television by her desk. She finally settled on the Weather Channel and watched as the report for the next few days floated across the screen. "I mean, we sent emails, but we lost touch in the months before the Ori attacked his planet. Maybe if we knew it was going to happen, we could've done something. Sometimes, I can't help but wonder if I see him because I feel horrible about not keeping in touch like we promised."

Teal'c reached over to squeeze her arm. "We will find them."

_A few weeks later_

It was Sam's turn with Daniel in the infirmary. She handed him the cup of horrible coffee she had snuck in for him, and they skipped the pleasantries.

"I'm pretty pissed at you," she said, staring at him over the rim of her paper cup.

"Yeah, I'm pretty pissed at you guys, too," Daniel replied, grimacing at the taste of spaceship coffee.

"So we're even then?" she asked, nudging his leg with her the tip of her boot.

"Yep," he said, reaching down to wrap his hand around her ankle. "So did I miss anything important?"

"I was shot. Closest I've come to dying yet. Then was pulled into another reality for a few weeks which kind of sucked. You?"

"Was turned into a Prior by a prissy little teenage brat. Friends didn't believe I wasn't going to hurt them and not sure my big plan was worth it all."

"I was married to McKay in the other universe."

Daniel threw his head back and laughed, a gesture uncommon to him, but worth seeing every time. "Pretty sure that means you win."

"It wasn't too bad, kind of sweet really." Sam smiled and propped both of her feet on the bed. She took a deep breath and continued, "Teal'c and I keep thinking we see Jonas everywhere. You didn't happen to hear of any survivors of Langara while you were away?"

Daniel lowered his cup and looked at her intently. "No. Can't say I was really listening for it though, it's not my favorite place."

"I know," she said, shifting her weight in the hard, plastic chair.

"If you both think you see him, he's probably out there."

"I'm just glad you're back. I missed you," Sam said. He tightened his grasp on her ankle in response then closed his eyes to rest. She sat for another hour keeping watch.

_His 20th Time_

It happened so often now that he only gave a quick glance at the man who stood near the door at the back of the town's temple. Teal'c noticed that everyone seemed to be looking for Jonas Quinn as well. Perhaps they were all desperate for something good to happen, to have that possibility of a happy ending. Gen. Landry had ordered them to visit sites where refugees were congregating to provide supplies and collect information.

Every time they visited a camp, the entire team would ask about survivors from Langara. There never were any, but they kept asking. At one place, they found a survivor of Hebridan, but she had never heard of Warwick and simply pulled her child closer to her and accepted a blanket from Vala Mal Doran.

Teal'c knew that Jonas Quinn might not give honest answers so any man who was of similar build and height was given close scrutiny. A few looked terrified when he turned them around to see, a few had no expression and less fought back. Those Teal'c never bothered with because his friend would fight back.

There – off in the shade of a tree – stood the man Teal'c had spotted from a distance. Shoulders were squared back, carriage was upright showing the man was not beaten by the Ori or grief. Teal'c began to walk towards him, but Daniel Jackson stopped him saying, "It's not him. I already made sure."

_The Breaking Point_

Sam was in the firing range, obliterating the paper man. Teal'c stood behind her, passive, yet tension was rolling out from in waves. Sam reloaded, imagined the paper man had morphed into the man who told them that he was from Langara and had witnessed the execution of the traitor Jonas, and fired.

_The End_

"That movie was ridiculous, Sam. Mitchell should never be in charge of choosing a movie again," Daniel said for the third time since they'd stepped through the Gate.

"It's Vala's turn next, she wants to see _Mary Poppins_ after one of the nurses said it took a "spoonful of sugar" to make the tetanus shot go down," Sam replied, focused on the path in front of her. It had been too long since they'd heard from Vala and Cam, who had entered the village a few hours ago. People were twitchy here from rumors filtering in through traders, and strangers were no longer looked kindly upon.

The com came to life in her ear and Vala's voice came through calm yet clear that she was moving quickly. "Someone has decided to follow me from the tavern. I may be a bit delayed."

"There was no one there when I left, Vala," Cam said.

"Well clearly it's because I'm prettier. No need to worry your little heads, just a duck around a corner and all will be well," she replied before her radio went silent.

Sam and Daniel were moving quickly to the rendezvous point. They picked up speed when Vala reported she had found something. They came through the trees, behind Teal'c and Cam; and before them stood Vala with Jonas trapped in her arms. Words were pouring from Vala's mouth, but all eyes were on the other man. Thinner, harder, with more scars. Sam pushed forward and pulled him in for a tight hug and then moved him onto Teal'c, who only grasped Jonas's arms and said, "It is good to see you, my friend."

"It's good to see you guys, too," said Jonas, the timber of his voice altered by the ordeal.

As they waited for the Odyssey to beam them aboard, Vala cracked jokes about going for a ride while Teal'c and Sam supported Jonas between them. Over his head, their eyes met and they smiled.


End file.
